Brazil K, Bédard M, Willison K, Hode M
Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario L8N 1G6, Canada.
Aging Ment Health. 2003 Sep;7(5):376-82. doi: 10.1080/1360786031000150649.
Changes in the health care system have meant that increasing numbers of the terminally ill receive the majority of their care at home. The purpose of this paper was to document patterns of informal and formal care provided to the terminally ill and assess the impact caregiving has on family members. One hundred and fifty-one family caregivers were recruited for interviews from two community-nursing agencies in an urban region of the province of Ontario, Canada. The majority of respondents 119 (79%) were the female spouses of the patient. The numbers of caregivers providing assistance in specific functional activities were: bathing, 133 (88%); mobility, 123 (81%); dressing and undressing, 114 (76%); toileting, 101(67%), and assistance at night 97 (64%). Sixty-two (41%) respondents reported that they had been providing some form of caregiving for over one year. They also reported that physical demands in caregiving increased substantially during the last three months of the care recipient's life. As family caregivers provided more assistance in activities of daily living they were at greater risk of reporting high caregiver burden. The results of this paper identify the types of care provided by family caregivers of the terminally ill and the impact these demands have on the family caregiver.
医疗保健系统的变化意味着越来越多的绝症患者在家中接受大部分护理。本文的目的是记录为绝症患者提供的非正式和正式护理模式，并评估护理对家庭成员的影响。从加拿大安大略省一个城市地区的两家社区护理机构招募了151名家庭护理人员进行访谈。大多数受访者119人（79%）是患者的女性配偶。在特定功能活动中提供帮助的护理人员数量分别为：洗澡，133人（88%）；行动，123人（81%）；穿衣和脱衣，114人（76%）；上厕所，101人（67%），夜间协助97人（64%）。62名（41%）受访者报告说，他们提供某种形式的护理已超过一年。他们还报告说，在护理对象生命的最后三个月里，护理的身体需求大幅增加。随着家庭护理人员在日常生活活动中提供更多帮助，他们报告高护理负担的风险更大。本文的结果确定了绝症患者家庭护理人员提供的护理类型以及这些需求对家庭护理人员的影响。
